


Partners in Crime

by Lucky_Moony



Series: Domestic Bliss for the Gayer Good [2]
Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Albus is kind of a gay mess, Angst, Auror!Gellert, Canon Gay Relationship, Fluffy Ending, Happy ending because why not?, Hogsmeade cottage, Humor, Is Gellert cheating?, Jealous!Albus, M/M, Sassy! Gellert, Suspicions, Teacher!Albus, Vinda and Gellert are BFF, Well I think I am funny, domestic life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-25
Updated: 2019-03-05
Packaged: 2019-11-05 15:10:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17921195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lucky_Moony/pseuds/Lucky_Moony
Summary: February 1905. When Gellert, now an auror, is assigned a new partner at work,  Albus believes his soulmate is having an affair.  But is it really the case?





	1. Suspicions and a heartbreak

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> This little fic is in the same verse as Always You, but you don’t need to have read it first to understand what is going on here.
> 
> The story is set in 1905. Albus and Gellert have been living together in a tiny cottage in Hogsmeade for a few years now. Gellert has been an auror for the past two years, while Albus is teaching Transfiguration at Hogwarts. Their daughter, Gretchen, the apple of their eyes, is now almost five years old…
> 
> As always, English is not my first language Xxx

Albus’s worst nightmare had all began on Valentine’s Day.

This year, the day of the celebration of love fell on a Friday and for the occasion, Albus had planned a very special evening for him and his longtime partner, Gellert Grindelwald.

You see, since Albus wasn’t substituting here and there in Defence Against the Dark Arts anymore and was now a full-time Transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts, his charge of work had exponentially grown during the last few weeks.

He had more classes to prep and to teach, more marking to do and on top of that, he had to supervise the work of his newest colleague, Minerva McGonagall, a former student of his.

This, paired to the fact that Gellert was doing extra hours at work due to the lack of Aurors the Ministry currently had at hand and because he was a cocky bastard who had some difficulty in dealing with any form of authority AND the fact that they had a very sassy five year old daughter to take care of; it was no wonder the two men were in dire need of some alone time together.

Quick shags were fine now and then, but it had been the norm for the last few weeks and the redhead was more than ready to get their romance back to normal.

As a result, he hadn’t brought any work home tonight and Gretchen, their lovely daughter, was spending the night at Bathilda’s place.

Bless that woman, because what a night this was going be…

Albus blushed as he thought of what exactly he had in mind.

Of course, he had carefully planned everything…

First, he had managed to cook a very nice dinner; or rather, he had gone to the kitchens at Hogwarts and had asked for a specific meal to the house-elves, something they had been more than happy to do for him.

Then, he had placed some candles here and there across their cottage and had invitingly turned down the covers in their bedroom. Truth be told, Gellert didn’t particularly liked being romanced, but still, this was nicely setting the tone for the evening.

Last, but not least, he may or may not have been very inspired by one of Witch Weekly’s article called _Ten ways_ _to bewitch your husband in bed (and make sure he asks for more)_ as to how the rest of the night would go.

Let it be said he was solely reading this magazine for it’s knitting patterns, but one could sometime find interesting articles among the rubbish it usually contained.

Gellert was usually the one who initiated new things in the bedroom, but oh, would he be pleasantly surprised tonight.

Albus poured himself some pumpkin juice, since he had a very low tolerance to alcohol, and waited for his other half to get back home.

Close to 8.00, seeing Gellert still wasn’t back from work, he started to wonder where the latter was.

Had the blond had an accident at work; or worse, had he been killed on a mission?

Had he forgotten it was Valentine’s Day and was out to find him a last minute gift?

Fifteen minutes later, Albus was about to send an owl to the Ministry, when Ackley, their owl, knocked on the living room’s tiny window.

The redhead quickly opened the window and let his owl in, the latter handing his master the note he had been holding.

Albus frowned as he picked the piece of parchment, brushed some snow off from Ackley, who hooted in thanks, and quickly read said note.

_Liebling,_

_I’ve been assigned a new work partner. To celebrate this miracle our (lovely) boss has asked us to do a double shift._

_Don’t wait for me...I won’t be home until very late (if I ever get back home tonight)._

_-G_

Albus’s heart sank as soon as he finished reading Gellert's message.  Sighing, he poured himself a big glass of faerie wine.

Then, he ended up knitting in his bed and ate an awful lot of candies (mostly lemon drops and chocolate frogs) before he fell asleep at around 4.00.

So much for a steamy night…

***

‟And you know what Vinda did?”

‟No, but I’m sure you are going to tell us.”Albus quirked an eyebrow at his boyfriend and then glanced at Gretchen, who was sneakily trying to make her Brussels sprouts vanish from her plate.

His daughter smiled sweetly back at him as he returned his attention back to Gellert.

It had been barely a week since Vinda and Gellert had began to work together, yet it seemed all the blond was talking about lately was of her.

The two seemed to be getting along great, which was a bit odd seeing Albus could count on a single hand the number of people Gellert actually liked.

In fact, Vinda was the first person that wasn’t directly linked to their family that Gellert liked enough to be talking about in a positive way.

‟She told everyone Travers had the smallest _you know what_ she had ever seen.” Gellert was in stitches, while in the background, Gretchen’s last Brussels sprout disappeared into thin air. ‟ The idiot was still a deep shade of red when he left hours after she stated that fact and since then, he hasn’t uttered a word, which is saying something since he usually can’t shut the hell up.”

‟And how would Vinda know that fact?” Albus asked as Gretchen cleared her throat in the background, her arms crossed over her chest as she waited for her dessert.

‟Well, it seems he has some difficulty to keep his di-” Gellert paused as Albus glared at him. This wasn’t a very appropriate topic of conversation for dinner. ‟His _you know what_ in his pants.”he added as he glanced at Gretchen, who sighed and shook her head.

‟Dad, I know what a _you know what_ is. It’s called a penis and it’s what boys have between their legs.” She paused and shuddered. ‟It’s so disgusting.”

Gellert muttered in his glass loudly enough for both Albus and Gretchen to hear before he took a sip of the drink it contained.‟Your dad’s got a lovely one, but mine is even better.”

It was Gretchen’s turn to roll her eyes as Albus facepalmed.

Merlin, they would need to talk about what was appropriate to say in front of their daughter once more; and the sooner, the better.

After an awkward silence, Gellert went on.‟Oh, and then, Vinda-”

‟Don’t you have anything to tell me that doesn’t involve Vinda Rosier?”Albus asked with impatience.

It wasn’t that he didn’t like to hear stories from Gellert’s work, but he had heard enough about Vinda for a lifetime already.

Gellert paused as Gretchen Accioed a piece of chocolate cake directly to her plate.‟Let me think about it. Well, Tante Hilda told me she fought with your idiot of a brother over the fence yesterday.”

Albus frowned. ‟What happened?”

‟She didn’t say, but he did told her he was going to move out of Godric’s Hollow to open a business of his own soon.”

‟Really? I should try to write to him or to pay him a visit as soon as possible.”

Gellert shrugged and took another sip of his drink.‟Speaking of visits, I’ve just remembered that Vinda-”

Albus sighed more loudly this time. Merlin be praised that Gellert did not like many more people because he wasn’t sure he would have the patience to listen to him ramble about them on and off all the time.

***

If it had just been that Gellert was incessantly talking about Vinda, it would have somehow turned out fine after a while.

Or so Albus had thought at first.

But now, the witch was sending **_his_** Gellert notes when they weren’t at work together and this was beginning to go too far to the redhead’s taste.

The only person with whom Gellert had ever exchanged owls as constantly had been with him and Albus had to admit he was beginning to feel something weird in the pit of his stomach every time he saw her classy handwriting on a piece of parchment.

Was it what others called jealousy he was experiencing?

Because he would like to believe he was above that petty feeling.

In fact, this was all turning out to be ridiculous, _really_.

He should be glad for once Gellert finally had a friend.

Plus, Vinda was a woman and Gellert liked men, not women, right?

It was funny how they had never discussed this prior to dating.

Anyway, seeing they had been banging on a very _very_ regular basis for the last 6 years, it was safe to say Gellert wasn’t into women, right?

Which was why Albus tried to tone down the unpleasant feeling he felt every time he saw one of Vinda’s note and tried to ignore the two’s correspondence; until Vinda crossed the line on a Wednesday night, when she sent Gellert a note way past civil bedtime hours.

That night, Albus was feeling sick since he had caught the Frog cold that was spreading through Hogwarts and was happily cuddling with Gellert in their room, when Fauvette, Vinda’s owl, swooped past their bedroom window and dropped a piece of paper on the bed next to the blond.

The note smelled strongly of perfume (something very feminine and floral) and Albus, even though he didn’t even knew what was written inside it, instantly hated the note with all of his guts.

He had never felt such a strong feeling of disgust towards a piece of parchment ever in his life, yet here he was.

There was a first to everything after all...

Gellert seemed surprised by the note too. He quickly snatched it and read it fast, a smile spreading on his face as he folded it back.

It proved too much for Albus, who wondered why Gellert wasn’t telling him what was in the damn letter instead of going back to reading his damn book as if nothing had happened.

Albus desperately needed to know what was in there and he needed to know it _now._

”Darling,”he began with the most feeble voice he could muster, making him look as though he was on the verge of dying (when honestly that cold wasn’t that bad) ‟ Could you go downstairs and fetch me a cup of tea with honey in it?”

Gellert looked at him with concern and kissed the top of his head. ‟You know I’m the worst at making tea. Why don’t you Accio t-”

The redhead cut him off and tried to look more pitiful than ever.

After all, it was a universally known fact that men were close to death when they were afflicted by the smallest of cold, so why wasn’t his partner, a man, acknowledging this?

Gellert frowned at him and gave him an uncertain look before he got off the bed. He may or may not have been wondering if Albus was about to die before he went back from his tea making. ‟Alright, I’ll just go and prep it now.”

As soon as Gellert was out of the room, Albus turned on his right side and fetched the wretched note.

_Bonsoir mon petit chéri,_

_I’ve got something to show you and the quickest would be the best. You know I don’t like to be kept waiting._

_Stop by my flat before we head to work tomorrow._

_-V_

As soon as he was done reading the note, Albus folded it back and replaced it where it was beforehand.

His heart was racing and his brain was going wild as various thoughts flooded his mind.

Was Gellert hiding things from him? Why was he going to Vinda’s flat? Did he go there regularly?

Much too soon, he heard Gellert’s footsteps in the stairs and quickly faked he was asleep.

Gellert placed the steaming cup of tea on their night table, before he kissed his boyfriend's forehead, tucked him in, grabbed the note and left their room.

As soon as his partner had closed the door behind him, Albus opened his eyes; the feeling of unease intensifying in his stomach.

Was Gellert being unfaithful?

***

The first time Albus finally met the infamous Vinda Rosier was about two weeks after his ruined Valentine’s Day evening.

Of course, as soon as he saw her, Albus couldn’t ignore the fact that the witch was absolutely stunning.

He also discovered at once that what he was feeling now on a regular basis was seething jealousy.

Vinda most assuredly was the most beautiful woman Albus had ever laid eyes on.

She had stopped by their place to fetch Gellert to work, since the latter was late due to the fact Gretchen had transfigured most of their kitchen into a butterfly haven, complete with trees, a pond and blooming flowers left and right.

Vinda was wearing a very fashionable dark green dress that hug her at all the right places.

Her creamy skin was actually glowing and looked as flawless as Gellert’s, which was saying something.

Her raven hair were neatly tied in a bun and she was wearing just a touch of makeup that enhanced all of her beautiful features. When she spoke, her voice had a hint of a French accent, which made her seem even more sophisticated.

She only remained at their place for five minutes, yet her manners and her smile were perfect if not a little cold and she left a lasting impression on Albus.

Even Gretchen took an instant liking to her, mimicking her accent as soon as she had left their cottage, which really got on the redhead’s nerves.

For the first time in years, his magic went unchecked and the three dirty plates that had remained on their kitchen table suddenly exploded in a million of pieces, which scared Gretchen who quickly checked her butterflies were still doing alright.

***

‟Mein Baby Phönix,” Gellert hotly whispered against Albus’s flushed skin as he lightly bit his neck and fumbled with the latter’s clothes.

This was the cheesiest pet name Gellert had ever came up with, but it was always extremely effective in cranking up the mood a notch.

Albus was more than looking forward being thoroughly shagged as he began to think about what he had read in Witch Weekly a few weeks ago and hadn’t been able to put in practice yet...

He gave Gellert’s firm butt a squeeze as the latter successfully unbuttoned his shirt.

Albus moaned as his hands finally took hold of Gellert’s belt and adroitly unfastened it. Gellert paused his ministrations for a second, to Albus’s puzzlement, as he picked the redhead’s wand from their night table.

‟Time to turn the light off,”the blond declared as he waggled his eyebrows and muttered a quick Nox, which turned the room pitch dark.

Albus frowned a bit and tried to stop his brain from imagining things as Gellert continued to kiss him feverishly, slightly nibbling and licking his way down his chest in the dark.

Albus was less and less on board with their making out as his brain was piecing more and more things together.

Gellert usually unashamedly enjoyed them having sex in broad light, stating he liked to see every bit of Albus’s body and the pleasure on his face has he possessed him.

Making out in the dark was a first since their first summer together.

What did it meant?

Was Gellert hiding something from him?

Now that Albus thought about it, it had been a couple of days since he had seen his partner fully naked, which was extremely odd considering his lover was very proud of his body and was absolutely unashamed when it came to nakedness.

Was he hiding hickeys? Nail marks? Merlin! _Was he sleeping with **her**?_

A million possibilities all flooded his mind at once as he paused and his stomach began to clench and to be filled with that feeling that was now getting more and more familiar by now.

Gellert, sensing something was wrong, paused his kissing. ‟Am I doing something wrong? ”

Albus hesitated for a brief second before he replied something. ‟No…”

‟You are a terrible liar,”Gellert stated as he rolled off of him. ‟ Why didn’t you tell me you weren’t in the mood to begin with? You do seem out of sorts lately. Are you too tired because of work? Is headmaster Black being an utter arse once more?”

‟I just have a sudden headache, that’s all, ”Albus replied as more unwanted images of Gellert and Vinda kissing and making out were conjured into his brain. 

He turned on his left side as Gellert sighed loudly and very dramatically turned his back on him.

A few minutes later, he could hear Gellert’s soft breathing as a tear rolled down his cheek.

He probably was being ridiculous, but what if Gellert had grown tired of him after all these years? What if he had decided he liked women now?

***

Two days later, Albus was busy planning his lessons in his classroom when he received an owl from Gellert.

Since their failed shag, the two hadn’t spoken much.

He quickly opened the note and read it at once.

_Liebling,_

_I’ve got some special plans for us this weekend._

_Pack some clothes (you’ll need some very fancy ones, and please, none lavender colored) and meet me at 7.00 at the enclosed address._

_PS : Tante Hilda is going to take care of Gretchen, so you don’t need to worry about anything._

_-G_

His mood lightened up.

It seemed Gellert still thought about him after all. Since his marking was done and it was Friday, he decided he could leave Hogwarts earlier for once.

The address Gellert had written down in the note was in London and he figured since he was early he could meet his boyfriend directly at work.

After a quick stop at their cottage, where he packed some clothes and bathed, he used the Floo network to get to the Ministry. He then quickly went to the second level, where the Auror Department was located.

The Auror office was a cluttered open area divided into cubicles, which was usually buzzing with talk and laughter, but was rather calm this evening.

Travers was there and threw him a dark look from where he was seated in a corner and didn’t even bother to acknowledge his presence.

Truth be told, Gellert and Vinda were playing an awful lot of tricks on him lately and the former probably had some more reasons to hate him.

Albus nodded at him anyway, saw William Hopkirk was asleep at his desk and walked up to Gellert’s cubicle.

Unsurprisingly, it was very orderly.

There were pictures of Gretchen pinned here and there, the picture Bathilda had taken of them during the summer of 1899 (the one where they were laughing and holding each other by the shoulder), a drawing of the deathly hallows (of course) and a pin-up witch.

In fact, the Auror Headquarters was plastered with pin-up witches, since it’s staff was almost exclusively male.

Half-naked pictures of females seemed to be the norm in those cases.

Albus remarked with a pang that Vinda’s desk was adjoined to Gellert’s. Hers was very tidy too. It smelled like perfume and there was a picture of her and Gellert hugging placed on it.

Luckily, Bob Diggory, who was just back from warming his lunch, stopped him from tearing up said picture by greeting him.

‟Hey, Dumbledore! Nice seeing you here! Long time no see. Are you looking for your housemate?”The latter asked pleasantly, unaware of the redhead’s inner turmoils.

Albus nodded. ‟Exactly, Diggory. Where’s Grindelwald?”

‟He’s out with Rosier. Lucky fellow.” Diggory paused and took a bite of his lunch. ‟Does he often bring work home?”

Diggory let out a booming laugh at his own joke as William woke up with a start and pulled his wand out, ready to curse anyone or anything, which made Diggory laugh even more loudly.

Albus cleared his throat. This was so awkward.

 Why wasn’t Gellert still at work if they were supposed to meet only at 7.00?

And how come he had left with Vinda once more?

‟Do you know where Grindelwald was heading with Vinda?”Albus managed to ask as William yawned.

‟We heard them talk about The Carlton Hotel.” Diggory frowned. ‟ It’s a very fancy place for a casual fuck, if you ask me.”

‟I’m sure she is worth it,” William chimed in. ‟She’s got a lovely pair of boobs. And that ass, too…”

Albus gulped and managed to keep a straight face a he wobbly walked out of the office, while Diggory and William were still happily discussing their coworker’s body and Travers was still darkly staring at him.

***

The Carlton really looked amazing and as Diggory and Hopkirk had said earlier, very costly.

Albus distractedly read on one of the lobby’s walls that the hotel had opened in 1899 and was owned by two successful muggles.

In fact, there were a lot of muggles hanging around.

Those were mostly women who tried to look their best by wearing beautiful dresses and fine jewelry, while their husbands were smoking expensive cigars in the hall.

Truth be told, Albus would certainly appreciate the place more if he wasn’t in such a bad mood.

Someone from the clerk desk eyed him suspiciously, since he wasn’t dressed as fancily as he should have been, but the man seemed to sense it wasn’t the time to bother him about his look when all he wanted to do now was to find his boyfriend and murder him with his bare hands.

He took a deep breath and tried to somewhat look less suspicious and more relaxed when he spotted his idiot of a partner in the distance. He would recognize those unmistakable blond curls among thousands, if the need ever manifested itself.

The latter had his back turned to him and was wearing a highly fashionable black suit that suited him to perfection.  He was of course standing there with Vinda, absolutely gorgeous in a dark blue silk dress.

Women from all across the room were staring at Gellert with envy and at Vinda with jealousy, something Albus was feeling on a spiritual level too.

He decided to walk up straight to them, his fist tightly clenched at his side, when he saw Vinda lean against HIS man and grab HIS man by the arm.

Albus let out a couple of swear words as he saw the two walk away. As a muggle woman stared at him with shock, he decided to follow them from a distance.  

The couple walked up the grand staircase and paused after a while in front of a richly decorated door that was located at the far end of a seemingly endless corridor.

Gellert, after unlocking the door, picked Vinda up and carried her bridal style into the room.

To say Albus was feeling as though he had been stabbed in the heart multiple times was an understatement.

But instead of feeling defeated, Albus felt so much anger it was ridiculous!

If Gellert thought he could have sex with Vinda and then get him in the same bed afterwards; getting two fucks for the price of one, well he was wrong.

_So very wrong!_

And that two-faced no good for nothing man would pay for this.

Albus leaned against the wall and took a deep and shaky breath before, without knocking, he uttered a quick Alohomora and pushed the room’s door open.

 


	2. The green-eyed monster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Thank you so much for all the interest you are showing for this fic :D
> 
> As always, English is not my first language Xxx

When Albus bursted into the hotel room, he was met by quite a sight.

Vinda was elegantly lounging on a very fancy looking velvet chaise longue, while Gellert was pouring her a drink of what looked like Champagne.

The witch simply quirked an eyebrow at Albus, smirked and picked her glass.

The audacity of that French…that French _slag_!

‟ _GELLERT GAREN GRINDELWALD_ , what exactly do you think you are doing?” Albus managed to blurt out calmly enough even though deep down he was on the verge of exploding, crying AND committing a murder- **or two.**

Good thing he had always been quite good at multitasking.

‟ Well, drinking champagne,” Gellert replied as he Accioed another glass and began to fill it right up to the brim.‟ Do you want some? What are you doing here so early and how did you knew which room I had booked?”

Albus took a deep breath.

 _Merlin_ , that suit really looked incredible on the blond. But now wasn’t the time to dwell on how incredibly hot his… Wait, how was he supposed to refer to Gellert now?

His cheater of a partner? His two-faced quasi-husband?

As his brain was trying to figure everything out without giving him an aneurysm, Vinda, an insolent smirk on her heart shaped red lips, stared at him with amusement.

There was only so much one wizard could take before reaching his breaking point.  His wand hand was shaking as he pulled his wand out and pointed it directly at Gellert.

‟I guess you don’t like Champagne…”  Gellert shrugged and shared a look with Vinda before he stared back at the redhead. ‟Are you alright, liebling?  You don’t seem very well.”

‟It’s all very mundane, I’m fine.” Albus could feel tears coming to his eyes, but somehow he managed to keep a straight face and kept those ridiculous tears in check. ‟Spare me your stupid questions, _Grindelwald_! Aberforth has been right all along! You really are a manipulative and emotionless git! After all these years together this is what you do to me?”

Gellert frowned at him and scratched his chin. ‟Well, if the room isn’t to your liking, I can go downstairs and check if we can have another one.”

Not only had Gellert lied to him during those last few weeks; he was now doing it to his face!

‟YOU CAN BE QUITE THICK FOR A GENIUS, YOU UNFAITHFUL PIECE OF TRASH!”

Well, so much for remaining calm and collected…

Concern was now written all over Gellert’s face.‟Merlin Albus, what are you going on about?”

Vinda, who had remained silent as of now, slowly turned her pretty face towards Gellert. ‟Your partner thinks we are having an affair, _mon chéri_.”

As she finished her sentence, Gellert let out one of his loud mischievous laugh. This was the funniest thing he had ever heard in his entire existence. Albus could be so ridiculous at times!

‟Merlin, Albus what-” Gellert still looking amused turned around and walked a few steps towards his man, but the latter just pointed his wand more firmly in his direction.

‟Don’t even try to touch me or to talk to me ever again,”Albus’ voice was colder now even though he could feel a sudden rush of blood to his head.‟ I don’t want to have ANYTHING else to do with you ever again, Grindelwald.  I’ll keep custody of Gretchen and you will finally destroy that blood pact of ours.”

Vinda cleared her throat. She seemed less amused by now. Truth be told, she wasn’t usually one for drama.‟ _Mon cher_ , being that angry isn’t doing wonders to your complexion. ”

Albus stared blankly back at her. This woman really was something else. ‟You…you vixen!”

‟ _Merci, Poil de carotte_. ” Vinda raised her glass and took a long sip of her drink.

‟Scheiße Albus, behave!”Gellert’s eyes grew wide. It wasn’t usual for Albus to use such a language. ‟Is that it? You think I’m having an affair with Vinda?”

Vinda winked at Albus before she blew a kiss at Gellert.

 The two snorted as Gellert sat down next to her and began to drink from the glass he had prepared for Albus.

‟Dumbledore,” Vinda began with her thick accent as she slowly crossed her long legs to allow Gellert more room on the chaise longue. ‟I can assure you nothing has ever happened between us and never will.”

‟How did that idea even cross your mind in the first place?”added Gellert as Albus let out another shaky breath.

The redhead lowered his wand, but kept it in his hand as he sat down on the bed. That thing was GINORMOUS and was taking about half the space of the richly decorated room.

‟Since you’ve began to work with her-” Albus vaguely gestured to Vinda with his chin. Oh, his mother would probably swat him behind the head if she could see how he was acting right now. ‟ You’ve been talking non-stop about her.”

Vinda gave him a knowing look.‟I have that effect on people.”

Gellert shrugged. ‟I don’t know. It’s true I do have a tendency to get very passionate when I like something- _Like, not love_ \- and Vinda and I, we just get along fairly well.”

Albus placed his wand on the bed and sighed once more.

 _Wait_ , were these real silk sheets? These costed a fortune…

‟And what about all of those bloody notes she sent you at the cottage?”Albus crossed his arms over his chest. Silk sheets weren’t going to sway him that easily. ‟And what about that note she sent you in the middle of the night?”

Vinda groaned out loud and lightly pushed Gellert’s back with her right foot.‟And here I thought _you_ were a dramatic bitch.” She stared back at Albus. ‟ I didn’t know 9 o’clock was considered the middle of the night. British people really don’t know how to have fun now, do they?”

Gellert took his coat off, before he pointed an accusing finger at Albus.‟Oh, I knew you had read it!” He rolled his eyes and pitched his voice.‟Darling, you are pants at this, but fetch me some tea anyway because I am DYING.” Gellert rolled his eyes.  ‟More like dying to read my correspondence than anything else.”

Albus ignored his boyfriend’s mockeries and continued his interrogation.‟What were you doing at her place? Do you go there often?”

Gellert groaned out loud as he got up and pulled a small velvet box from out of his discarded coat’s pocket. ‟Well, since you won’t be happy if I don’t spoil everything right now…”

He got up and handed the box to Albus, who didn’t seem impressed, but took it anyway.

Vinda took another sip of champagne. ‟My aunt did this at a fair price.”

Albus threw her another dark look before he opened the small box.

He cursed out loud in three different languages as he discovered it’s content.

In it was a shinning silver trinity knot ring and if one looked closely enough at it, they could see here an there the deathly hallows symbol  was hidden within the loops and curves of the original design.

‟Is that a ring?”He asked dumbly as Vinda snorted and Gellert rolled his eyes.

‟What else could this be, Liebling?” Gellert downed his drink in a go. ‟That’s why I never try to be romantic. It’s always bound to fail.”

Vinda nodded. ‟I’ve told you it never is a good idea to get hitched in the first place.”

‟But our souls are already bound together because of our blood pact,”feebly retorted Albus has he kept on staring at the ring.

Gellert groaned.‟Yes, but I thought we could get it legally done this summer, since there’s a small village in Austria where you can do so now.”

‟You want us to get married?” It was a good thing Albus was already sitting down on the bed, otherwise he probably would have swooned at this point.  

‟Sounds like a _no_ to me,” Vinda added matter of factly as she poured herself a second glass of champagne. ‟Celui-là est pas mal.”

‟But…what about…” Albus began before he glanced at Vinda and blushed. ‟You turning the lights off when we-erhm?”

‟ _Oooooh, à moi tous les détails croustillants!_ ” Vinda gushed out loud as Gellert got up and began to unbutton his shirt, revealing a very nasty looking injury close to his left ribs.

Albus gasped upon seeing it. That thing was still oozing blood. ‟Did you really thought you could hide this from me forever?

‟Well until it was fully healed, yes.”

‟And to know this all happened because Travers is what we call _un incompétent_ …”chimed in Vinda.

Albus shook his head and made an annoyed noise with his tongue as he stared at the ugly magical injury some more. ‟ Merlin, Gellert!”

‟You were very busy with work and I didn’t want you to worry with this on top of everything else.” Gellert shrugged as he put some order into his clothes and sat down on the bed next to Albus.

‟And what about your colleagues? Diggory and William were very keen about the fact that you two are sleeping together.”

‟It’s a cover, Dumbledore, so those two idiots don’t bother me anymore!”  Vinda got up and leaned against the wall and stared at her perfectly manicured hands. ‟You see, _mon cher_ , I love women and it took me 2 seconds flat to figure out Gellert here was into men.”

Wow, this came as a shock. He could feel his resolve melt as Gellert snaked an arm around his waist and pulled him against his chest. ‟But I saw you carrying Vinda in here!”

Vinda shrugged and sighed. This idiot was even more obstinate than herself. ‟This was just for fun, Dumbledore!  I was here just to see what the place actually looked like.” She paused and flashed him a predatory smile.  ‟And I was maybe hoping to find a lovely witch to spend the rest of the evening with, while her husband would be downstairs smoking cigars and losing money at cards.”

‟Do you believe me, now?” Gellert asked, a boyish smile on his face as he picked the ring and managed to slid it on Albus' left ring finger.

The redhead simply nodded as he felt overwhelmed by all of the emotions he had felt tonight and over the last few weeks.

Did this really mean they were engaged now?

‟It’s confirmed, after all the drama I’ve just witnessed here tonight, I really don’t think long term relationships are for me.” Vinda added as her work partner and his idiot of a boyfriend kissed under her very eyes.

Men…

***

Albus stared for the umpteenth time at his ring. It really was a thing of beauty. ‟Galatea will press me with so much questions once she sees I’m wearing a ring now…”

He was snuggled against his boyf- No, wait, his fiancé’s chest, as the moon, full and now high in the sky, was slightly lighting their room with it’s glow.

Thank Merlin, the rest of the evening had gone smoothly.

Vinda had accompanied them downstairs to the dining room, but had soon left them to their own devices when she had spotted a beautiful petite brunette standing all by herself close to the bar.

The food they had been served downstairs had simply been scrumptious… and so had been the rest of their evening.

Ending it naked under silk sheets and in a bed almost bigger than their entire cottage put together had simply been the icing on the cake.

‟She’s going to be very jealous, but it’s not my fault if she’s an ugly old spinster.” Gellert opened one eye and gave the redhead’s arse a squeeze.‟Speaking of jealousy, I was just thinking about the fact that the great Albus Dumbledore, who made fun of me for being jealous of Elphias during our first summer together, was actually the first one out of us two who threw an actual tantrum over it.”

‟First of all, this wasn’t a tantrum. Second, those two situations aren’t even remotely comparable. ” Albus propped himself up on one elbow. ‟Vinda isn’t Elphias.”

‟Well, it’s true Vinda doesn’t have greenish pockmarks all over her face… ”

Albus slapped Gellert playfully on the shoulder before he snuggled back down against his chest and tangled his legs with the blond’s.

He closed his eyes, wanting to rest a bit before their next round of lovemaking, when Gellert’s voice startled him a few minutes later. ‟By the way,where did you learn that fantastic new tongue trick of yours?”

Albus smirked. ‟It’s a secret.”

It seemed a subscription to Witch Weekly was now mandatory…

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As was mentioned in Always You, Aurelius was conceived during Grindeldore’s wedding trip to Austria *wink wink* :D
> 
> My next work will be “What’s Two More?”, where we discover if Grindeldore is really going to welcome twins to their little family…  
> Of course, Minerva will be there to handle the crisis!
> 
> Comments and kudos make my day :D


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